


Paper Boat

by 22ndaisy



Category: H&D (Korea Band), Produce 101 (TV), UNIQ (Band), X1 (Korea Band)
Genre: Alpha/Omega, Confessions, Dumb Characters, Friends to Lovers, Light Angst, M/M, Mutual Pining, Omega Heats, Omega Verse, Scent Marking, VICTON BABIES HANGYULLIE UWU, alpha!seungwoo, alpha!seungyoun, alpha!subin, jealous characters, omega!byungchan, omega!hangyul
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:21:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23374582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/22ndaisy/pseuds/22ndaisy
Summary: "What is it that you're hiding from your very own best friend, Gyullie? What couldn't you tell, not even to me? I just wanna know, please," Seungyoun asked, bending on his knees a little to level his gaze with Hangyul whose eyes were cast downwards.
Relationships: Cho Seungyeon | Seungyoun/Lee Hangyul
Comments: 17
Kudos: 80





	Paper Boat

**Author's Note:**

> im dedicating this work to Amanotaku, the princess of seungyul chogyul fics. (only cos she denies that she is the actual kween of the tag tsk) you're a support system all on your own, and im grateful beyond words that i have you esp when i feel like being the biggest hater of my fics. love you!

Seungyoun's stomach was knotted in worry. 

Dohyon had just texted him that Hangyul still had not returned to the dorm that MBK provided for the two, and it had been three days since anyone had seen or heard from him. The two's manager had gone ballistic, even lashing out on Seungyoun himself because they were best friends, and shouldn't Seungyoun at least have an idea where Hangyul would be? The alpha wondered the same thing. Shouldn't Hangyul have informed him?

Hangyul's heat was scheduled to arrive today and

Seungyoun couldn't bear the thought of his omega best friend being out of reach (or worse, alone) during his heat. 

He suspected that Hangyul went somewhere after their little standoff three days ago, but he didn't know where. He'd asked Dohyon to check Hangyul's bedside, hoping & praying that Hangyul was, at least, smart enough to bring his suppressants with him but true to his worries, his omega best friend's bottle of suppressants was stashed neatly in there. So where the fuck is the omega? Seungyoun breathed in a calming breath to appease his wolf. Not that it worked. 

His phone beeped with another text message from Dohyon and it read,  _"Seungwoo hyung just called me saying I could expect Hangyul to return home today. I don't know what's happening Seungyoun hyung."_

Neither did Seungyoun. So before he could process it, his fingers were swiping up, down, left, and right and in no time, his phone was pressed to his ear, ringing as he waited for Seungwoo to pick up.

"Seungyounie?" the leader of both Victon and X1 answered.

"Hyung! You knew where Hangyul was all along, and didn't care to tell me?!" Seungyoun bellowed, for a minute forgetting that he was speaking to someone older than him; his alpha unleashing his fury on the other alpha who apparently had been in contact with Hangyul the past three days. His hackles stood on its end, and his wolf was growling in an unbridled show of irritation.

"Cho Seungyoun!" the older answered with a berating tone, unwilling to receive Seungyoun's attitude. 

The younger alpha reined in his temper in shame, but his wolf was still restless. "Hyung, MBK was practically in a state of calamity the past three days looking for Hangyul..." he pointed out to at least give the older some context as to why he was reacting this way.

A long, silent pause stretched between the two as Seungwoo seemed to take his time to collect his thoughts. "A lot has happened in those three days, Seungyounie," the older sighed. "Hangyul just came here and--" Seungwoo suddenly cut himself off, vying for another approach, "Look, when you see him, promise me you won't get on his case, okay? He'll need space."

Seungyoun wanted to retort with a sarcastic, _"_ _Of course. He'll be in pre-heat. So of course, he'll need space!"_ but he chose not to. Seungwoo didn't deserve any worse than his earlier outburst. So he let the older speak again, "Seungyounie, whatever happens, please promise me you won't lash out on him, okay?"

It was Seungyoun's turn to be confused, his eyebrows furrowing. "What do you mean, hyung?" 

He had an ugly suspicion. That there was so much more to Seungwoo knowing of Hangyul's whereabouts than the older was letting on, but the details to those aren't clear to the younger alpha since obviously, Seungwoo wasn't going to spill. Seungyoun just knew he didn't like how Seungwoo knew more than he, Hangyul's best friend, did.

"Just promise me that, please," the older pleaded almost desperately, and before Seungyoun could pry further, the line went dead, leaving the alpha no choice but to stare at the phone in his hand, anger & worry now diluted with confusion.

*

Two hours later found Seungyoun waiting for Hangyul to arrive at the latter's dorm, with Dohyon being absent with their manager, probably out eating pork ribs. He had Hangyul's bottle of suppressants ready on the coffee table. 

He's planning on asking the omega to take them as soon as he arrived and although his alpha wolf was itching to pace back & forth while waiting, Seungyoun opted to just sit on the couch with a perfect view of the door, fists curling and uncurling to & from a ball of contained tension. There was no calming his wolf down until it was sure his best friend was safe; huffing in impatience as the hours ticked by and Hangyul still wasn't home.

So in the meantime, Seungyoun mentally prepared himself & his wolf for Hangyul's scent & pheromones which he was sure would be especially strong since the omega's heat was supposed to hit him today. But honest to goodness, he also just wanted to give Hangyul an earful first for giving him a migraine for going MIA the last three days, scheduled to be in pre-heat, without his suppressants with him. 

Hangyul had always been careful and keen on letting him know — as the best friend — about his scheduled activities especially in relation to his heat cycle. But not this time. Which was a first. And Seungyoun's brain had gone into overdrive wondering why.  _Oh well, there's always a first time for everything,_ he thought in an attempt to make light of the situation despite the gnawing suspicion that he wouldn't like what he'll find out once he gets to the bottom of Hangyul's 'three-day disappearance'.

The sound of the door clicking pulled him from his thoughts and while Seungyoun held his breath to minimize his intake of Hangyul's omega heat-charged scent & pheromones that will probably arrest his senses as soon as the omega stepped foot in the house, in came the younger, looking alarmed at seeing Seungyoun in their dorm's common area.

"Seungyoun hyung..." Hangyul rasped, eyes darting around the dorm, probably looking for Dohyon.

"Dohyon's not here," Seungyoun quipped, puzzled to see Hangyul looking  _fine_ and not at all frazzled as any omega in pre-heat should.

"Wait. Why are  _you_ here?" Hangyul asked, closing the door behind him, and toeing his shoes off. "Didn't you tell me you were going to wait out Wooseok hyung's heat and help him get through it this week?" Hangyul pointed out, and if Seungyoun was correct, the omega was avoiding his eyes. That did his alpha wolf no good, now all alert and hawk-like eyes observing the younger closely.

_Right. There was that._

It was true that he'd told his best friend about his plan to help Wooseok break his omega heat since Jinhyuk was in an overseas schedule. And boy, what a tense discussion that was, Seungyoun recalled, remembering Hangyul calling it a 'bad idea' given how Seungyoun liked the other omega. 

Seungyoun remembered brushing off his best friend's advice with a half-hearted, "It's not like that anymore, Gyul. It was Jinhyuk who asked me the favor, telling me that I was probably Wooseok's second most-trusted alpha. And you know that Jinhyuk wouldn't be back until next month!"

"Yeah, and I bet my ass that your wolf is practically prancing around, singing in delight knowing that you'll finally get to mate with your favorite omega. In his heat, even," Hangyul gloated on sarcastically, accusation still thick & heavy in his voice even if Seungyoun was just replaying these from his memory.

Seungyoun remembered wanting to tell Hangyul then that Wooseok wasn't his favorite omega — that he was. That Lee Hangyul was. But, he had his pride and he wasn't in the mood to back down & out of this fight, so he instead chose to dwell on how he didn't like the tone in the younger's voice. And the fact that it didn't sit well with him how Hangyul was accusing him of having ulterior motives in agreeing to help Wooseok out.

So Seungyoun shoved his sorrow over Hangyul's misconception and zoned his senses in on the anger instead. He remembered his palms growing sweaty qand his breaths coming in short & shallow before he rose to his full height towering over Hangyul, with a low snarl escaping his throat. "You don't get to talk to me like that, _omega_." He was conscious then of his angry pheromones affecting the younger whose eyes widened in alarm at Seungyoun's show of alpha superiority, but it wasn't like the alpha could help it. 

So Hangyul, a slave to his biological makeup, backed up with a small whimper, "H-Hyung, I'm s-sorry."

It was humiliating how easily Seungyoun was able to assert his upper hand over him, putting the omega in Hangyul in his place. So as soon as the younger conceived the idea of fleeing the scene with his tail between his legs, he dashed out of Seungyoun's home without so much as a backwards glance.

That was the last time Seungyoun saw and heard from Hangyul before the omega had gone missing the next three days.

But it appeased his wolf a little that his best friend was, at least, back now. They'd never been able to stay mad at each other too long anyway, so Seungyoun let out the breath he was holding in a whoosh, only now rembering that Hangyul had asked him why he was here.

"You dash out of my apartment after our little spat _and_ _then_ go missing the next three days  _and then_ ask your best friend why he's at your dorm when you finally decide to show up again?" his tone didn't carry any resentment (disappointment, maybe), but the omega was still standing by the door, pressing his back against it, as if afraid to get near Seungyoun. (Or was it afraid to let Seungyoun near? But why?)

Hangyul awkwardly chuckled, sounding really fake even to his own ears. He was about to say something when his eyes landed on the bottle of suppressants on the coffee table between him and his best friend, and maybe it was fortunate that both of them had really short attention spans.

Following his eyes, Seungyoun remembered, "Oh yeah, by the way! Is your heat delayed? You look fine and you don't smell like your usual pre-heat scent at all, Gyul. But I prepared these just in case..."

Seungyoun didn't bother pointing it out, but he noticed Hangyul's eyes widening a fraction before the omega muttered, stuttering, "Y-Yeah, hyung. Thanks. I'll just go take a shower and--"

Moving with the speed of an alpha, Seungyoun was already in front of Hangyul, blocking his path, before the younger even realized that the alpha had moved. "You're hiding something from me," the older observed, stepping closer to the omega whose nervous pheromones started to infiltrate his senses.

But it smelled different somewhat. As if there was a trace of another familiar scent he could detect on Hangyul, as the omega shuffled a few steps back in panic which, by the way, was all so uncharacteristic of him. 

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Seungyoun hyung," Hangyul feigned innocence, covering his nerves with a peal of fake laughter. He attempted to sidestep the alpha on his way to the bathroom but the older wouldn't allow him. 

Seungyoun also decided to indulge his wolf's urge to prowl closer, crowding closer in Hangyul's space, and sniffing to try to recognize which scent was polluting the younger's otherwise usually calming omega scent for good measure. There was a slight trace of omega heat, but it wasn't as strong as it should be in pre-heat, and there was... something else.  _No, someone else._

Hangyul looked like he wasn't going to tell the truth anytime soon so Seungyoun tried to recall Dohyon's last text message and his phonecall with Seungwoo, for some clue about where Hangyul had been--

_Han Seungwoo._

Seungyoun's wolf growled, now standing to attention as it recognized Seungwoo's alpha scent on Hangyul before Seungyoun could even finish that thought.

It was Han Seungwoo's alpha scent on Hangyul's skin. And the realization gutted Seungyoun; to know that his best friend was marked with another alpha's scent. Only Seungyoun's alpha scent had ever been on Hangyul and to know that his best friend — his favorite omega — had let another alpha scent mark him was something that Seungyoun's entire system wanted to reject. He felt slightly nauseous.

However, Seungyoun had half the mind to remember that scent marking could happen platonically between friends. (But  _still_ there was just something different this time. And Seungyoun was neither pleased nor appeased. Not even close.) "You were with Seungwoo hyung all this time..." the alpha stated matter-of-factly, confident that he had deduced it correctly. 

"Y-Yes," Hangyul stuttered, deeming it wise not to say anything more. He didn't want Seungyoun to figure out any more than what he already did; didn't want to incriminate himself. And it wasn't as if he'll get the reaction he wanted from the older once the alpha finds out what really happened.

"How? Why?" Seungyoun asked simply, not bothering to hide the look of suspicion he was wearing on his face.

"I-I just needed his help with s-something," Hangyul breathed out; not exactly lying, but not exactly telling his best friend the whole truth either. How could he even confess to his best friend whom he'd been attracted to for years, that their last quarrel over Wooseok sent him to heat earlier than expected, and that Han Seungwoo helped him break his heat?

After he'd been mad over the notion of Seungyoun breaking Wooseok's heat? Yeah, no, he couldn't risk being called a hypocrite when it was no secret that Lee Hangyul himself had a teenie tiny crush on their leader during Produce X 101 days.

But much more pressing & floating in the forefront of Hangyul's mind was how he could remember seeing green the last time they had an argument. He had been jealous, plain and simple. Jealous of how willing & almost excited Seungyoun was to help Wooseok get over his heat. But he couldn't exactly show it; not when Seungyoun had never looked at him as more than a best friend & roommate.

Hangyul remembered the twisted way his wolf found Seungyoun's angry alpha pheromones attractive. How it pushed his wolf into going to heat two days earlier than expected.

He knew then he couldn't face Dohyon at the state he was in. He was hot all over, panting as if his lungs couldn't get enough oxygen. He didn't want to burden the kid with worry over his current state. _Oh, dear god,_ Hangyul recalled crying inside his head as soon as he stepped out of Seungyoun's apartment, realizing that he really was going into heat, all because of the notion of his best friend mating with another omega.

He could still recall asking the worried cab driver that he'd hailed to drive him to Victon's dorm instead, and he was lucky it was Byungchan who opened the door to him — Seungwoo's omega.

It was clear in Hangyul's memory that it was Byungchan's dimpled smile of fondness that greeted him before he realized that his vision had gone hazy. The next thing he knew, the older omega was shouting, "Hangyullie?! Oh my god, you're going into heat!" It was all the younger omega could remember before he almost hit the floor if not for Byungchan's arms catching him mid-fall. And then he blacked out.

When he finally came to, Hangyul could remember becoming immediately aware that he was lying down on a bed that wasn't his, in the middle of a room which smelled of both Seungwoo and Byungchan, with Byungchan seated on a chair near the door.

"You are in heat, Hangyullie," the older omega said with a frown as soon as he was sure that Hangyul had gained full awakedness & consciousness. 

And it was then that Hangyul became conscious of the film of sweat covering him all over, and the ache in his insides, twisting painfully and making him crave an alpha's touch, scent, and warmth. It was a stark reminder that, true to the older's words, he'd gone in heat after his fight with Seungyoun.

"I-I have to go, hyung..." Hangyul weakly said, pushing himself up so that he was sitting up on the bed, throwing the sheets off of his legs.

"We can't allow that. It's not safe for an omega in heat to be out alone," Byungchan said, quickly standing up to block the doorway while holding his hand up in a silent command for Hangyul to stay where he was. "None of us are allowed to go out today, too, so there's no one to take you. Our manager hyung is an unmated alpha so he can't drive you back to your dorm either."

The younger omega's heart constricted in panic, while he felt the strong urge to tear his clothing off. He can't spend his heat here. But maybe they had suppressants. That could, at least, help. So Hangyul opened his mouth to speak but the older omega beat him to it, "We're all out of suppressants, too. The other omegas of the group have also just gotten their heats so..." Byungchan trailed off, implying that that option wasn't available for Hangyul either.

Hearing this made more than a slight anxiety rise in Hangyul's throat. He  _really_ really can't spend his heat here. So he wracked his brain for another solution. Could he ask their manager from MBK to bring Dohyon to the Nam family's residence in Gangnam in the meantime so Hangyul has the dorm to himself? But that doesn't solve the problem of getting back to his dorm safely. Maybe he could ask Seungyoun to lend him his place for the time being while he was away... helping Wooseok through his own omega heat.

A small gasp escaped his lips as he felt as if someone just harshly punched a solid fist onto his stomach at the reminder. His wolf whined, aching & hurting from the core of his chest & gut.

Seungyoun had always been there for his heat. Not in the usual way alphas were there for omegas during the heats, but he still missed him. Ached for him — his best friend whom he'd wanted to be his alpha for a long time now.

But he could only painstakingly recall how easy it was for Seungyoun to stay in the same house as Hangyul whenever his heats got terribly bad (even with suppressants); changing the sheets for Hangyul, cooking for him, preparing him his change of clothes after a shower, making sure he was taking his suppressants on schedule; and doing all the things that an alpha could do for an omega in heat, except touch him and sate the omega's burning thirst to be owned, dominated, touched, and mated with.

Clearly, Seungyoun wasn't into him in that way because if he was, the alpha wolf wouldn't have survived being under the same roof as Hangyul during his omega heat and not do anything. Unless the alpha had steel for self-control which Hangyul doubted. So yeah, Seungyoun most likely just had zero percent attraction to him.

Seeing a series of different unreadable expressions cross the young omega's face, Byungchan spoke again, bringing Hangyul's full attention back to him, "So the thing is... I asked Seungwoo to--"

"Byungchan hyung!" Hangyul protested, as soon as his quick brain processed what the older omega was about to offer him. He didn't even let Byungchan finish; didn't want him to finish. "No!" Hangyul nearly screamed, making sure that his rejection of the idea came quick, and as loud & clear as possible.

He couldn't imagine why Byungchan and Seungwoo would even consider it — Seungwoo helping Hangyul break his heat. "I can't! That's just--" he cut himself off with a gasp as his insides turned, reminding him of his current state. He was conscious of the worried frown on the older omega's face and he felt sorry causing others to worry over him like this. 

"Hangyul, listen," he began, "Seungwoo and I have mated, marked, and bonded with each other. I'm not at all worried nor threatened."

Hangyul gaped at the mated omega in front of him, as he fisted on the sheets while waves of want wracked his body. He couldn't wrap his head around the fact that he was actually in a predicament such as this. He couldn't say anything, yet his wolf seemed to protest at his human's resolve to reject the offer. After all, an omega in heat would take any nearby alpha willing to help him get through his heat, regardless of consonances or whatnot.

So Byungchan continued, "Besides, I practically asked him to. We thought about letting you stay to handle it yourself, which I'm sure you can. But we aren't sure how long you usually take when you have to do it alone without suppressants."

"Four days. Maybe five."

Byungchan sat back down and scratched his forehead. "Yeah. Unfortunately, we cannot lend you our room for more than three days because we are scheduled to shoot our reality show here in our dorm this coming weekend. They'll be installing cameras. And Victon's unmated alphas are in the bedrooms beside and across this one, so unless there is an alpha with you, there's no stopping their wolves from..." He sighed.

And Hangyul could only sink back down on the bed in defeat; unsure what the smartest thing to do here was.

"Hangyul, you have my permission. And you & I both know that we can trust Seungwoo. Even with this."

"But--"

"Please, Hangyul. Let us help you. I don't know what's up with you and Seungyoun but Seungwoo caught a whiff of your best friend's angry pheromones that stuck on you so we figured we can't ask him for help either. Unless--"

"No, please. Seungyoun hyung can't find out that I'm here, please," Hangyul begged. "I need... I need some time away from him."

"Allow us to help you and Seungyoun won't hear a thing until your heat is over," Byungchan bargained, and Hangyul felt like he'd reached a dead end with Byungchan's words sounding so much like a condition that he won't be able to turn down.

So the omega hung his head and breathed in deep, conscious again of the way his whole body was singing in need. Then Hangyul remembered that it was then during that moment that he'd made the decision, nodding slowly in surrender.

"Hangyul," Seungyoun said his name, effectively bringing the young omega's thoughts back to the present.

"Oh yeah!" Hangyul chirped, all fake smiles & guard up, "Weren't you scheduled to go to Wooseok hyung & Jinhyuk hyung's place this morning?"

Seungyoun whipped his head back, weirded out at the sudden change in topic. "I called Wooseok this morning. I told him I couldn't go there until you came back."

Hangyul wished his heart didn't leap in treacherous hope at how easily misinterpreted Seungyoun's statement could be. If he allowed himself to be a teenie tiny bit delusional, then Hangyul could let himself believe the possibility that Seungyoun deemed the welfare of his omega best friend more important than breaking the heat of the omega he liked. A self-deprecating scoff bubbled in Hangyul's throat but he swallowed it down.  _As if_ _,_ he thought bitterly.

"Well, I'm here already," Hangyul beamed, arranging his features to look nonchalant.  _Fake, fake, fake._ "You may go now, hyung," he said, tapping Seungyoun's shoulder patronisingly, seeing this as his escape route, finally. He sidestepped the alpha who looked nowhere near convinced by his act, but he'll keep up the pretense. It was better that way. He just hoped Seungyoun would drop the matter. 

Every step felt heavy, as if his feet were blocks of lead that he literally had to drag. But when he was about five steps away from his bedroom, the alpha's loud booming voice resonated and bounced off of the walls of their dorm. "Not until you tell me just what is up, Lee Hangyul!" Confusion and anger were apparent in the way that Seungyoun was practically shouting, and as Hangyul expected, the older's pheromones came assaulting his senses a second later.

Slowly, Hangyul turned around to see Seungyoun still standing where he left him, now facing him, shoulders tense, hands balled into fists and eyes a bright yellow. He tried to force something past his lips — anything — but his wolf had begun to cower in fear, shrinking onto himself with a small whine, as Hangyul's person fought to stand his ground. 

"Why do you smell like Seungwoo hyung?! Why did you leave your suppressants?! Why didn't you bother to, at least, message me to let me know where you are?! God, I've been worried sick & out of my damn mind these past three days and when you finally come back you're all dodgy and defensive and distant! What the fuck is happening, dammit!"

_Shit._ This was the first time Hangyul saw Seungyoun in mid-shift state. He could also see from where he stood that the alpha's bottom canines have become longer & visible.

Hangyul's omega trembled, hackles rising, senses heightening, and defensive mode peaking. Of course, an omega would be scared. Any omega is no match to any alpha, especially against an alpha with adrenaline pumping in his veins, scent & pheromones strong enough to subdue any omega even without any actual physical contact, and fury charging the wolf with a strength that no one would want to know.

But Hangyul's human was quick to silence his wolf's worries. He took a calming breath and reminded himself that Seungyoun would never hurt him. That his best friend could never hurt him. If there was one thing he believed in, it was that.

"Seungyoun hyung..." Hangyul softly called. "Calm down, please." His wolf couldn't help but release a thick dose of his own scent, both signalling his initial fear and silently pacifying the alpha in his best friend. And just like magic, Hangyul's scent worked to soothe the temper of Seungyoun's wolf, and in no time, the alpha visibly did as the younger so nervously requested with a small voice.

Slowly, it started sinking in on Seungyoun what had just happened, as his wolf retracted its bottom canines, and removed the bright yellow from his eyes. Shame washed over him as he realized that he'd gone mid-shift in anger. Towards his best friend. The one omega he would never think to use his alpha upper hand on. The one omega who he has internally vowed to protect at all costs.

"I-I'm so sorry, Hangyul-ah," Seungyoun blurted out hurriedly, holding his upturned palms out placatingly, wanting Hangyul to know he didn't mean any harm, while also hating the minimally wary look that his best friend was still wearing on his face. He felt like a tool.

"You won't hurt me," Hangyul said, more of a statement than a question, appeasing the guilt he both saw and sensed from his best friend.

"I would never. Never in a million years."

_Physically, you won't. That's some truth in there,_ Hangyul grimly thought, recounting all the times Seungyoun had hurt him with his being insensitive & dense about his feelings. So lost in his thoughts, Hangyul was unaware of the alpha approaching him. It was only when his wolf perked up at the nearness of his favorite alpha did Hangyul notice that Seungyoun was already standing just a few inches in front of him. Almost too close for comfort.

"What is it that you're hiding from your very own best friend, Gyullie? What couldn't you tell, not even to me? I just wanna know, please," Seungyoun asked, bending on his knees a little to level his gaze with Hangyul whose eyes were cast downwards. "The last time wasn't the first time we fought but what happened? No one could contact you. No one knew where you were... Am I being weird? For making a big deal out of this?"

The omega sucked in a breath through his nose, mentally preparing to put an end to this charade for once and for all. He didn't know how the older would react but maybe it was time. Maybe they'd really come to the point where at least one of them had to quit holding back  _ so much _ . So he confessed, "It's me, hyung..." he said softly, silently anticipating the onslaught of questions to surely follow. "I went to heat the night we fought," he simply expounded before the older could even get a word in.

On the outside, Seungyoun only went still, straightening up and taking half a step back but inside, it felt to him so much like he had crashed onto a bulldozer, an anvil falling down from the sky and on him before he could even let Hangyul's answer sink in. His wolf whimpered. As if from physical and emotional pain; as if it was offended. As if it had just been kneed in the stomach, then kicked once again as it laid hurt on the ground. 

Seungyoun could form a bajillion more questions and draw a gazillion new theories from the bomb that the omega had just dropped on him. "Your heats were never off schedule-- Wait your suppressants are here... and it's only been three days--" he floundered for words as Hangyul's revelation still fell short of sufficient to make sense of everything. 

"Seungwoo hyung helped me through my heat," Hangyul hurriedly added as soon as he felt a pinch of courage, knowing that if he ever let a second pass, he'll never get to confess. "It was a long story. But to cut it short, Byungchan hyung asked him to, given the situation. _My_ situation ."

A whirring in his stomach required Seungyoun to brace himself onto the wall to his right. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He refused to believe it was true. He entertained the possibility that Hangyul was pranking him. Wrong timing, for sure, but he felt nauseous when he inhaled and caught Seungwoo's scent on his best friend — the evidence of the truth in Hangyul's words. And braving looking Hangyul straight in the eyes meant nothing but a mental image of another alpha touching his best friend in the most intimate of ways. His wolf, for the umpteenth time today, growled in a mix of emotions he couldn't quite distinguish apart.

"Is Seungwoo hyung your first alpha?"

Hangyul nodded, eyes glued to the ground.

Fuck. Fuck it all to hell.  Seungyoun ground his molars and clenched his fists. "Did he knot you?" The burn of how explicit and almost too private the question was, scalded Seungyoun's own tongue. He didn't know why he was keen on knowing. He just knew his wolf won't let him live it down of he didn't ask.

"Hyung--" the omega began, emitting a different scent this time and it took only seconds for the older to determine what it was. Embarrassment. Mixed with a little bit of hesitation.

"Just answer me, please" Seungyoun demanded before a forlorn sigh escaped him when he had to repeat the question. "Did he knot you? Yes or no."

Hangyul contemplated lying, just to get a rise out of Seungyoun and hopefully elicit some kind of reaction from him that would hint on the alpha wanting him back. But his conscience wouldn't let him sleep at night if he ever got to push the lie from out his lips. So he took a moment to stare at the older and answered, "No, he didn't."

A gale of relief arrested Seungyoun and it was like he could literally & physically feel his fury dissipate. But his wolf's curiosity did not end where Seungyoun's irritation did. He still had no answers as to how Hangyul ended up in Seungwoo's bed. "Your heats always arrived like clockwork," he pointed out for the third(?) time since Hangyul arrived, "You were never too early nor delayed. I still don't understand, Gyullie..."

The omega raised his head to gaze at the older. And the alpha stared right back. A staredown with Hangyul begging Seungyoun to drop the topic and not drag it out; Seungyoun pleading his best friend to make it make sense.

"God, I need to be seated for this," Hangyul said, letting his shoulders drop, always been unable todeny the older; as vulnerable to Seungyoun as a paper boat is to water.

Maybe that's how their dynamics will always be; who they are. Hangyul, frail & fragile; Seungyoun immovable & unyielding. So there really was no way Hangyul could go out of this unscathed, he gathered.  _And wasn't that just unfair?_ Here he was, tormenting himself for wanting someone who'll never want him back, while Seungyoun was merrily offering to help another omega through his heat, when he never once so much as let the tip of his finger graze any part of Hangyul's body during the omega's heat.

Hangyul's thoughts were interrupted with a start when the older gently wrapped a hand around his wrist and started dragging the younger to where he knew Hangyul's room was.

Once inside, he sat on the edge of the omega's bed, tugging on Hangyul's wrist so that they were seated side by side, thighs and shoulders touching. Seungyoun tried to not keel and keen at how strong Hangyul's omega scent was inside the room, but it wasn't like he was repulsed by the smell. Quite the opposite, actually. Hangyul's scent had the same effect to Seungyoun as catnip had to cats. It was like his favorite drink — enticing, scalding his throat in the most delicious of ways, warming him up from his core and outwards to the tips of his fingers, ears, hair, and toes. 

He inhaled again, a little too deeply it seemed, because this time he had to fight the urge to gag as he caught Seungwoo's scent on Hangyul's skin. But then again, he also couldn't physically distance himself from the omega. It was as if Hangyul's wolf was calling to his own wolf, and he was hopeless to do anything about it.

Hangyul looked down on his hands on his lap, his wolf bristling at the agitated alpha that was seated so near him. It would be all to easy to cuddle up to him. And although they've had their fair share of cuddle & snuggle sessions being best friends and all, Hangyul had just gone through his heat and the alpha looked nowhere near up to any sort of physical intimacy at that level and in this time. Besides, traces of Seungwoo's scent still clung to him and he was sure Seungyoun, being an alpha himself, wasn't entirely oblivious to it. So he'll try to ease onto everything as subtly and smoothly as he can.

"It was the first time we fought about another omega, hyung," he began a second after the alpha nudged him almost playfully by the shoulder, a silent request. "And it wasn't not just over some random omega, too. It was abour the omega you like."

"I  _liked_ ," the alpha interjected with a correction, "There is a difference," he said, his words falling into Hangyul's seemingly deaf ears as the younger proceeded without missing a beat. 

"And I couldn't stop imaginging how ecstatic you must be to finally have the chance to touch Wooseok hyung. During his heat, nonetheless. I couldn't stop picturing you with him in comparison to how you are with me during  _my_ heats, hyung..."

There was an underlying implication in the omega's words and Seungyoun wanted to seek clarification for them but he didn't have the level of certainty nor the self-esteem to do so. So he let a deep, audible sigh escape him.

To Hangyul, it seemed as if he was exhausted about having to explain it again and again. "I don't know how else to make you believe me, Gyul..." the alpha admitted helplessly. "I already told you countless times before that it wasn't like that anymore."

That he did. "But I had no reason to believe you!" Hangyul pointed out, turning his upper body towards Seungyoun and the older did the same, braving to reach out and intertwine his fingers with his best friend, rubbing his thumb across the back of the omega's hand as if doing so would let his words somehow become believable to Hangyul.

Weary and somewhat exasperated, the alpha attempted to dig deeper, seeking more than answers — seeking a chance. A sign. A clue to what must be going on in Hangyul's brain (and heart). The reason why they were here now. "What does it even matter, Hangyul? Why did it bother you so much so that you went into early heat?"

The omega looked at their joint hands for a moment with his lips pursed, before he shut his eyes from the view and shrugged. "I guess..." he trailed off, looking for the right answer and found none. "I guess the same reason why you reacted the way you did when I told you that Seungwoo hyung helped me through my heat? I don't know? I don't know..." he said, releasing everything in one breath.

But it was a lie. Because he somehow knew. Still not with a certainty though. So in the meantime, he deflected, because he wasn't quite ready to pour out his feelings onto his best friend yet. Besides, it wasn't as if it would do anything but only confuse the hell out of Seungyoun more. 

"What are you saying, Gyul?" Seungyoun asked, eyebrows meeting in the middle as he tugged on the other's hand as if silently asking the omega to look at him. The confusion and cluelessness in his voice were apparent, and it was Hangyul's cue to give it up. The alpha was denser and more naive than would be helpful for them both. Nothing good could ever come out of this.

"I'm saying that we probably need time apart fromeach other...?" Hangyul said as if he was asking, words & tone holding zero resolve. He sighed and stood up, pulling his hand away. "Because Wooseok hyung needs you and I could use some time alone to clear my head, hyung..."

Seungyoun stared up at the younger from the bed, watching him turn hurriedly to grab his towel from the computer chair beside his bed, before heading towards the direction of the bathroom. 

He had a guess about what exactly was happening. And although his wolf's interest, to say the least was piqued, his human was already busy trying to brush the assumptions off. So he just watched as Hangyul pulled his shirt over his head while padding towards the bathroom barefooted; his alpha heart beating wildly in his chest because it felt like he should do something (like tell Hangyul that they weren't nearly finished). But he didn't know how. 

"Please lock the door on your way out, hyung," the omega's strained voice floated to Seungyoun with his scent, before the sound of the bathroom door's lock clicking into place came, resonating too loudly in the small bedroom.

Maybe Hangyul was right. Maybe they needed some time apart to clear their heads.

*

Byungchan placed the small bowl of assorted cookies & pastries down their dorm's coffee table. It was the second time he'd had to refill it after Hangyul and Subin wolfed down its contents like the young, growing, and physically-starved puppies they were.

Subin was seated on the floor beside Seungwoo's foot while Hangyul was on the leader's lap, having his back patted in soothing motions.

Seeing the head alpha occupied with the younger omega whi was sobbing onto his chest, the youngest member of Victon took the opportunity to flash his best cutesy smile at his Byungchan hyung; a silent request for permission to dig in. He hoped his aegyo would work.

Byungchan tutted at Subin's antics but nodded nevertheless. However, his permission came with a reminder. "The oatmeal cookies are Gyullie's favorite, make sure to leave some for him."

Subin nodded vigorously, childishly holding his palm up in promise, before he went ahead and picked for himself a chocolate chip cookie which he immediately scarfed down while doing a small jig of glee.

Even though Subin had already presented as an alpha, the pupper was still very much in there; and Byungchan could only shake his head with a small smile at the view of his mate comforting the still sobbing Hangyul, and Subin who was stuffing his face while oblivious to the fact that he was drawn to stay in the living area with them because of Hangyul's scent & pheromones that hinted on a need for alpha comfort.

"When is our Gyullie going to stop crying?" Byungchan cooed, carding a caring hand through the younger omega's soft fluffy hair, while exchanging cryptic messages with his mate through their eyes.

"I guess when Seungyounie comes around and realizes that this little omega here is quite the catch!" Seungwoo attempted at a joke, only making Hangyul bury his face onto the alpha's neck, the volume of his wailing rising. With a soft laugh and an endeared, "Aigoo~" Seungwoo went back to wrapping his arms around Hangyul comfortingly, smoothing a hand up & down the heartbroken omega's back.

"You know what, Hangyul-ssi?" Subin thoughtlessly butted in with mouth half-full of the sweet pastries, "I think you're cute & you're amazing!" He was unaware of the amused glances that the mated wolves exchanged as he added, "I'm an alpha, you know? So Seungwoo hyung and I can kick that Seungyoun-ssi's butt. Just give us a go-signal!"

At this declaration, a giggle escaped Hangyul despite the tears and the snot, just as the doorbell rang and each one of their wolves detected an alpha outside their door, from the strong scent that hinted on a little bit of apprehension.

Hangyul, still sensitive & vulnerable from crying his eyes out over his seemingly hopeless situation with the alpha he liked, whimpered and cuddled closer to Seungwoo's chest, already sensing who was on the door. "You called him?!" he cried, eyes watering up again as he felt a slight pinch of betrayal.

Byungchan opened his arms for Hangyul as Seungwoo urged the younger omega to stand up so he can answer the door. "No. But he called us, Gyullie," the older omega answered, motioning for Hangyul to huddle close to his side as Seungwoo disappeared to open the door.

Subin clambered up the couch from where he was seated on the floor and gave Hangyul a shy smile. "You can cuddle up to me, if you want, Hangyul-ssi. I can sense how shaken you are," he offered sheepishly, his wolf sensing the need go comfort the omega.

At this, Hangyul peered up at Byungchan. His wolf indeed was desparate for alpha comfort but he needed to ask the older omega if it wasn't shameful to take Subin up on his offer and if it was safe, to which Byungchan only wordlessly ushered him closer to the young alpha.

"You babies are the cutest," the older omega cooed, gently pushing Hangyul towards Subin who was scratching his neck awkwardly even while he waited for Hangyul to sidle up close to him. "Go on, Gyullie. Subin is a same-aged friend of yours."

Hangyul slowly & hesitantly lowered himself back on the couch beside Subin who immediately wrapped his arms around the omega's shoulders. "Oh yay, we're becoming friends," he chuckled.

"It only stays that way for as long as you give all the oatmeal cookies to me," Hangyul pouted, unconsciously scenting Subin's chest, probably due to his wolf's increasing uneasiness at just the thought that Seungyoun was at the doorstep.

_Please, let Seungwoo hyung send him away,_ he silently prayed, missing Subin's promise to only eat the chocolate chip cookies and missing also the fatherly look in Byungchan's eyes as he watched the two loosen up & warm up towards each other.

This was the scene that welcomed Seungyoun. Hangyul all snuggled up to someone else, painting a picture too domestic for his own liking. If it were up to him, he'd rip the arms from around Hangyul and declare the omega as  _his_ . But he was here to make it all better & to make up with Hangyul, not to act like a possessive neanderthal like his wolf wanted to at the sight of another alpha's arms around Hangyul.

"Gyul," Seungyoun breathed as Seungwoo trailed behind him, quietly signalling for Byungchan and Subin to give the two some time alone.

Hangyul's hands frantically & fruitlessly tried to stop his new friend Subin from leaving him, pretending to neither hear nor see Seungyoun, but the youngest alpha in the room was predisposed to submit to his leader and head alpha.

So Subin gave Hangyul a warm pat on the head, before standing up from the couch and forcing a polite smile to Seungyoun. "I'll just go get you more oatmeal cookies, Hangyul-ssi," Subin joked, secretly torn between telling Seungyoun off or making him promise that he wasn't going to worsen the sobbing, sniffing state that his new friend was currently in once they've left but...

"Jung Subin!" Seungwoo called more firmly & authoritatively this time, surprised that Subin had to be told twice.

At this, the pup scurried away, the apologetic look he gave Hangyul morphing into a warning look for the older alpha that he had no choice to leave his new friend with.

Hangyul rose to his feet and shuffled uneasily as Subin disappeared from his view. He could tell that Seungyoun was staring at him but he didn't dare look back. He knew his best friend had something important enough to tell him that he went out of his way to see Hangyul in Victon's door, but he didn't think he was ready for whatever it was just yet.

The older spoke first. "You scent marked him?" Seungyoun asked, not bothering with pleasantries, and as if the answer to his question wasn't already obvious.

"What does it matter?" Hangyul asked, sniffing defensively, eyes swollen from crying over the guy who was now in front of him. His words echoed inside his head in a familiar way, remembering that this was Seungyoun's question to him before. "And why are you here, hyung? How? It's only been two days. How did you break Wooseok hyung's heat so quickly?"

_Here we go again,_ Seungyoun thought, fighting the urge to roll his eyes at how easily the idea of bringing up Wooseok came to Hangyul whenever the younger went into defensive mode.

"I never went to Wooseok, Gyullie..." he explained, staring intently at his best friend, as if waiting for a specific reaction. "Not after the way you sent me away last time. My wolf didn't allow me to. Neither did Wooseok, after I told him what happened between us."

Hangyul frowned. " _'_ _What happened between us?'_ Hyung, it was just another argument. We've had millions of those before. I was just confused," he pointed out — lied — blinking slowly at how the conversation wasn't going down the direction he expected it to, "It's just that this time, I needed the time & space to process things afterwards. Probably because I just got out of heat then. Nothing more."  _More lies._ "You were free to leave, hyung. It wasn't like there'd been some groundbreaking revelation or confession--"

"But I'm saying there could have been one and I wouldn't have ran, Lee Hangyul."

Momentarily stunned into silence, Hangyul reared his head back in confusion, unsure how to interpret his best friend's words.

"I'm here to say that I'm not letting you send me away like last time. Not without a confession from you," Seungyoun said before he second-guessed himself, taking his best friend's silence as his cue to continue. "Or from me. If you'll hear mine out..." He became conscious of Hangyul's sweet scent thickening the air with tension which served to make his wolf all the more drawn to his best friend. In more ways than one. He hoped there wouldn't be a need to repeat himself because he wasn't sure if he had the strength and boldness to say these things again.

Hangyul was anxious, Seungyoun's wolf sensed it more than his human saw it. And wouldn't that be just the most Hangyul thing to feel at this moment? Seungyoun knew that beyond his best friend's humility and modesty, Hangyul has his fair share of self-doubts and insecurities, too. And with how stellar he'd been with hiding his no-longer-platonic feelings towards the omega, Seungyoun would be right to assume that Hangyul was currently having trouble believing his words.

"Seungyoun hyung..." was the only dumb reply Hangyul had as he blinked at his best friend. He knew he'd basically confessed his attraction halfway the last time and although he knew that it wasn't entirely impossible that his attraction to the alpha could be mutual, he had to plead. "Please don't make a joke out of this, Seungyoun hyung. Please don't make a joke out of my feelings for you..."

Hangyul couldn't stomach the thought of receiving this sliver of hope that talented, ethereal, hilarious, understanding Seungyoun could ever like him, only for it to be quashed and taken away from him later. His poor heart who'd been helplessly in love with the alpha for as long as they'd been best friends wouldn't be able to take it. He wouldn't survive it.

But Seungyoun spoke, silencing the younger's doubts with words that were although familiar, were also holding a seriousness and a gravity to them that was altogether new & scary. In a good way. "I would never. Never in a million years," he vowed, eyes shining with a certainty, a promise, and a confirmation that his affections were as strong as the omega's towards him, if not stronger.

"You mean--" the younger never got to finish the rest of his sentence as Seungyoun took the final step which closed any sort of gap between him and the omega, and pressed his lips against his best friend's, wolf preening in triumph & delight, and releasing his scent so that the omega would see only him. Feel only him. Smell, hear, and want only him.

Hangyul's knees damned near buckled under him, so he braced himself by wrapping his hands around Seungyoun's arms which were around his waist, allowing the older to pull him into pressing the warmest, most intimate parts of themselves against each other's.

Seungyoun heard the omega's tiny squeak of surpise, and he answered with a low hum of his own; in awe of how right it felt to be so close to his best friend like this.  _Damn._ He wished he'd done it sooner. He wished he'd had hints of Hangyul liking him back earlier; maybe then he wouldn't have repressed his feelings for so long, hiding them under his surface-level attraction for Wooseok. Maybe then he'd done more for Hangyul, especially during his heats. Maybe then he wouldn't have hurt Hangyul.  _His omega._

Hangyul let his hands travel up from Seungyoun's arms to interlock behind the alpha's neck, pulling his best friend down so that their lips were slotted harder and closer against each other's.

It was surreal. To inhale and smell nothing but Seungyoun's scent, to surge forward and be met by nothing but Seungyoun, to let his jaw slack and taste nothing but the exquisite taste that was Seungyoun.  _His alpha._

Seungyoun splayed his fingers on Hangyul's lower back and dug gently as he was granted access on the omega's mouth and he could only swallow the soft whimper that the younger fed him; the omega all clumsy and enthusiastic with his kisses, messy but transparently desperate in his desire.

The older felt his chest tighten; from the lack of oxygen or from how big his heart seemed to have swelled in his love for the younger, he wasn't sure. So he pulled away briefly, pressing his forehead against his best friend's as he panted to catch his breath, feeling the younger's breaths on his lips, and keeping his hands on Hangyul's cheeks. 

He heard Hangyul gulp and struggle to catch his own breath also, before the omega asked with a small voice, "This means what I think this means right, hyung?"

The question tugged at Seungyoun's heartstrings, and he internally vowed to himself that he'll spend the rest of his days making sure that there was no more room in Hangyul's mind for doubting the fact that he was more than worthy of receiving the greatest, grandest love anyone in the world could ever give. And that Seungyoun was willing and able to start proving that. Right here & right now. 

So in response, Seungyoun nodded before he leaned back down to press his smile against Hangyul's pout.

"You won't take it back, hyung?" Hangyul prodded further, throwing his arms around the older's shoulders and consequently throwing himself onto the older's chest. 

"I would never. Never in a million years," Seungyoun promised as he ducked his head to back his words up, scent marking Hangyul by the shoulder and the crook of the omega's neck, rubbing the tip of his nose and cheeks to every part of Hangyul's skin that was exposed. 

"Good. That's good," Hangyul sighed breathlessly, wolf purring in satisfaction as he procceded to do his own scentmarking of his alpha. "Because I'm in love with you."

"And me with you..." Seungyoun spoke softly, returning the sentiment and meaning it from his gut and with his whole heart, totally uncaring that they were still in the middle of Victon's living room.

"Good. That's good," Hangyul whispered against his alpha's shoulder as Seungyoun continued to scent him as thickly as he could.

The alpha answered with only a giddy chuckle as his best friend exposed his neck for the alpha's convenience.

In their own bubble, the two were both unaware of the cheesy smile on Subin's face as the youngest member of Victon stood in the hallway, spying on them. If the strong pheromones that smelt and spelt a whole lifetime spent together were anything to go by, Subin would say that the two were not far from mating, marking, and bonding. And he wouldn't be wrong.

**Author's Note:**

> this is even more worrisome & horrific than "sticky situation" lol literally my worst contribution to this tag (and i hope it stays that way)
> 
> seungyul nayshun rise (find me on twt!)


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